Tubing-spear.



W. LANG.

TUBING SPEAR.

PPLIGATION FILED JAN. 19. 1910.

Peteeted Feb.2s,1v9f11-.

, f left kami thread www, L7-JJ weee@ THE Nokms Ps'rERs co wAsHlNaroN, nA c.

UNITED sTATEs raTENT oEEioE.

WILLIAM LANG, OF GERMAN TOWNSHIP, ALLEN COUNTY, OHIO.

TUBING-SPEAR.

Application filed January 19,

To all, whom it may concern.'

Ile it known that" I, lVILLiAM LANG, a citizen of the United States, residing in German township, in the county ot Allen and State ot Ghio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Tubing` Spears, of which the following is a specification.

This device is designed for use in recovering tubing from exhausted wells.

The objecty ot' the invention is more especially to provide means whereby the spear can be released from its hold on the pipe in the event it is found that the tube or pipe A second object is to provide means whereby a similar device can be used to. recover a spear that has become lost or separated from the tubing to which it is attached.

The invention embodied in the part-icular instance of it herein shown and described and then pointed ont in the claims.

In the accompanying drawing-Figure l is an elevation of t-he device showing the position ot' parts when the spear is engaged with a tube, the outer tubing or casing. being shown in section. Fig. 2 is a central vertical section ot' the spear. Fig. 3 is a detail view in elevation of the stock or member that contains the holding jaw. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on the line Fig. 2 the scale being enlarged. Fig. 5 is a detail view in side elevat-ion showing the device for locking the stock to the spear body.

In the views G designates the body of the device which is perforated axially as indicated at Ga.

7 designates the stock that carries the holding j aw or gripper. This stock 7 which is tapered at its lower end has an axial perforation 7@L of enlarged diameter to form a socket at its lower end as seen at 7 b. The stock is connected with the body by a left hand thread at 9 and the axial perforations of the stock and body aline with each other. One side of the stock 7 is cut out and formed with a surface that is inclined upwardly and inwardly toward the axis of the stock as seen at 7C and through this surface into the socket 7b is made a longitudinal slot 7d that is enlarged about midway its length laterally at both sides as seen at 7e.

8 designates the gripping jaw which is best made of tempered steel, and which has a shank with a lug 8a having a neck 8 that just lits the slot 7 d so as to be guided thereby.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 28, 1911. i910. serial No. 538,917.

The lug S is ot.' larger width than the slot proper 7 hence the lateral enlargement of the slot at 7e to permit the insertion of the lug into the socket 7b. The lug is made with an elongated hole or slot 8c so that it can oscillate on a rod passed through the slot when the relative positions of the two are changed.

l0 designates a rod having at its lower end a knob l()a of larger diameter than the slot 8 and this rod is passed up through said slot and the axial pcrlorations of the stock and body with the knob ltr1 below the lug which at proper times can support the gripper. The extreme upper end ot' the rod 10 isthreaded and on the rod is a coil spring ll and above the latter a tube 12, and there is a nut 13 above the tube on the threaded end of the rod.

let is a washer resting on the body to form a seat for the lower end ot' the spring and a washer l5 is provided to form a seat for the spring at the end ot' the tube. These parts are of such size or are so adjusted that when the stock is turned up fully against the body at the let't. hand thread 9 the gripper shall rest at or near the lower end of the slot 7d and its toothed surface will project beyond the plane of the side of stock and therefore grip or bite into the inner side of a pipe whose diameter is less than the combined diameters of the stock and gripper when the latter is in the lower end of the slot 7d, and so that when the length of the body and stock are increased by turning the body on the stock (when lxed) to the left the knob 10a will draw the gripper up the incline 7c and reduce the combined diameter of the gripper and stock so as to be equal to or less than the diameter of the tube engaged or so that the gripper shall be released and permit the stock to be withdrawn from the tube. The serrations of the gripper point upward and because the gripper 4is free to move upward o-n the rod it is easy to insert the stock into a tube but in the position of the parts shown in Fig. 2, after the stock is inserted, the gripper takes hold of the tube when lifted upward. Gravity causes the gripper to lag behind when the stock is thus drawn upward hence the stock and gripper' become pinched in holding position and permit a pull on the tube.

In deep .well drilling the hole is first made large for some hundreds oi feet. In this large hole a casing is inserted. Beyond or'last tube` that is usually intendedV to b e recovered. This third pipe is of smaller d1- Y y ameter than the second one and there is space between it and the next tube. To guide v'the spear into the tube to be drawn a pettifcoat or bell-shaped device having a shank i 17, that threads at V18 onto the body of the spearland a barred'frame v17 a terminating in a'liaring. ring 17h at its lower end 1s prof vided. The petticoat ismade of such length that its lower end lies below the point of the stock, and the lower ring is made of a dithe well.

yameter to tit within the second tube (20) referred to. The pettieoat isV thus a centering deifice'adapted toV direct and guide the spear into the tubing to be recovered from The spear thus' constructed is at- Y tachedat its body by rightrhand threads at 2i to the necessary length of pipe Aor manipulating member to reach from the Surtace of the ground to the tubing to be recovered said pipe being made up of sections` 22, 22a, connectedby unions like lthat shown at.23 with right-hand threads. VIt will thus be observed that when it is impracticable Vto pull a tubethe right hand threads of the manipulating pipe 22.y 22a, permit a tort of the latter to elevate the body of the spear from the stock at the threads 9, and thus withdraw and release the gripper. In this operation care'should be taken that the parts are so adjusted that theV stock shall not be detached from the body on unscrewing'the latter it suthcing togmove themY asunder sui'tieientlyto cause the bodyfto rise to a point where the Vcombined'diameter ofthe gripper and thestock are made less than "that of the tube lengaged as before pointed out. a Y Y Occasionally in the attempt to pull a tube l the manipulating pipe 22, 22a, becomes -ruptured especially at the connection of the sections. In this event it is desirable to VCopies'of this patent may be obtained for recover the lost spear. This can usually be accomplished by inserting in the upper end of the lost portionof the pipe 22, 22a another spear having the stock locked to the body, as by va steel key 26 set in a suitable socket as at 27 in each of the two parts and 'held by set screws 26a as shown in Fig. 5. lith this new `spear inserted and wedged in the pipe 22, 22, the body of the lost spear can be rotated and its gripping jaw released after which it is an easy matter to draw out both spears and the fragment of manipulating pipe attached. In the ordinary use of the device the steel locking key is, of course, omitted and is only to be added in the special exigency described.

lVhat I claim is: e

l. In combination with the body portion, a stock having a threaded connection with said body portion, a gripping jaw sliding in said stock, a rod l() extending through the body portion and into the stock and havinfv means at its lower end to engage the sai jaw, said rod being threaded at its upper end and provided with an adjustable nut, a tube 12 on said rod below said nut and a spring 11 on said body portion below said tube and supported on said body portion, whereby when said body portion and stock are conjointly elongated said rod acts on said jaw with an increasing but yielding strain, substantially .as described.

2. In a tubing spear, the combination with the body portion, a stock having a threaded i connection with said body portion, a grigping jaw sliding in said stock, and yiel ingly supported means in the body portion extending into the stock and provided with means adapted to engage but be normally disengaged from the jaw, said means adapted to engage the jaw and act on the same with a yielding strain when the combined length of the body portion and stock is increased by turning the body portion on Vthe stock, substantially as described.

WILLIAM LANG.

Titnessesz e v f T. R. HAMILTON, J. H. HAMILTON.

ve cents each, byvadidressing the i Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

